Left Melbourne on a grey, wet and freezing 11degree morning (We found out later it was the coldest Feb day in 150 years). The girls (8 and 10) were so excited but I think I was more so! Arrived at Tullamarine and no queues (shock horror) and paced like caged animals until boarding time. We did notice there was only one other family on AP flight. Flight was great. Flight attendants very attentive, constantly coming around with drinks and food. We had some sort of chicken and rice dish, the other choice was beef with noodles. The children got a children's meal although we didn't request one. Both there and back they would have enjoyed the adult meal better, so next time I'll make sure I specify no kids meals.
One of the attendants came up and asked if the girls would like to sit in the cockpit for a while! Wondered when the last time that was allowed on Australian airlines flights!! They had a great time chatting to the pilots. I had a great time marvelling at how desolate the centre of Australia is!!
Movies on the flight were: Taxi and Blue Hawaii.
Touched down in Denpasar only 5hrs and 40minutes later.
We exited the plane to be hit with the wall of heat and humidity, and the sickly sweet eggy smell I will from now on always associate with Bali. We climbed onto shuttle buses to take us to the terminal. Very efficient. We had our US$100 (4 x US$25) ready for the VOA. Lined up to pay (about 10 minutes), then got into another line to get the visa (about 15 minutes) then into another queue to have it stamped (about 10 minutes). Workplace efficiency has not yet hit Bali! Guess everyone needs a job to do. LOL
Located our bags which had been removed from the carousel and were waiting close by and through customs no problems.
We were met by our transfer people (Tour East, part of the package we booked through Flight Centre - but next time would just catch a cab from the airport) and after waiting for a couple of others we were taken to our hotel.
I think I spent the entire trip from the airport to the hotel (about 30minutes?) completely gobsmacked. I think I was expecting a smaller version of the Gold Coast? I don't think anything I read/heard about Bali prepared me for the sights from the bus of mangy dogs roaming the streets, rickety 'footpaths', storefronts (holes in the wall) overloaded with goods of all descriptions, and completely chaotic traffic. Horns honked everywhere. Later I would learn that this was just the normal way the Balinese travel, and not an overabundance of road rage!
Arrived at the Jayakarta Hotel in Legian where we were booked into a 1 bedroom apartment. The girls had twin beds and we slept on the sofa bed. There was a tv, sink, microwave, jug, aircon in lounge and bedroom, and fridge in the room, and one bathroom. Very clean and quite fine for us (as it turned out we didn't spend much time in our room anyway!). Told the girls 'last one in the pool's a rotten egg' so the race was on. The pools were great. Three altogether, included a toddlers pool. Many hours were spent enjoying the warm water and the deck chairs! The grounds of the hotel were lovely, very tropical, complete with frangipanis and squirrels. I have read criticism of the distance of the apartments to the pools, but I saw this as a blessing - no noise, and no pressure from the kids to go into the pool every time they heard someone else there!And really, it was about a 2 minute stroll...
Thought we would venture out of the grounds of the hotel to go for a walk on the beach. Immediately hit on for 'manicure? Pedicure? Hair extension?' Kept saying 'No thankyou' but didn't make much difference, in the end we just ignored them and felt really bad for being so rude! The beach was filthy. Plastic, debris, garbage all along the waterline and the water itself was slick with oil and muck. Wandered down a laneway and found where to change money and buy bintangs and softdrink and water. Rate was 7050, later rose to 7200. Bintangs (large) 11000, water (1.5l) 2500 and bottles of softdrink 1500.
We were exhausted that night and still on Melbourne time (3 hour difference) so we ate at the pizza restaurant of the hotel and went to bed early. Will list all the places we ate in a different post. Have had much better pizza elsewhere. Asleep by 8.45 Bali time - just as well, because apparently there was a small earthquake that night around 10.30pm and I would have really freaked if I had felt it!
More to come.